Volume 54

Cristina Sanchez

1Casa News from Spain - No. 71

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Álora Perfume Factory to be Converted into a Discotheque

The scheme is in the hands of Alfredo Guerisoli, a businessman with close links to Álora who specialises in leisure schemes. The Mayor of Álora, José Sánchez, confirmed that work had already started on the conversion of this flagship building, although he stressed that it was a private initiative. He explained that the Town Hall and the Business and Shopkeepers’ Association in Álora had, however, spoken with Guerisoli to encourage him to embark on a scheme to increase the leisure opportunities for young people in the municipality.

It is planned that the new venue could be ready by June or July this year. Some of the original installations, such as the furnace and the stills will be preserved. The building is situated close to the River Guadalhorce and the railway line, it is between the station and the district known as El Puente, the Mayor pointed out that the spot is ideal for a discotheque as there are no houses nearby.

It is envisaged that the discotheque will be able to house 2,000 young people in winter and 5,000 in summer. In addition to the building itself, said Sánchez, it is planned to install marquees outside, to be used for concerts and celebrations, since it is not possible to build next to the old factory because of its proximity to the river.

Flamenco Concert

There will be a Flamenco concert tonight, Saturday 11 March, at the Cervantes Theatre. ‘Biznagas' is a performance of Flamenco, classical music and verdiales. The concert begins at 9.00 pm. Tickets 6€.

Memphis Trio

The Memphis Trio will be performing at La Reja Bar in Álora next Saturday 18 March at 10.00 pm.

New Children's Clothes Shop

A new shop selling Benetton children's clothes for Max and friends opened this week in Calle Vera Cruz, Álora.

'Guadalhórcete' Exhibition

The travelling exhibition 'Guadalhórcete', showing images of life in the region during the 19th and 20th century will take place in the Casa de Cultura, Álora from this week until 18 March when it will close. Opening hours of the exhibition, comprising of informative boards and photographs, is from 9.00 am to 2.00 pm and of 6.00 pm to 8.00 pm. Saturdays 11.00 am to 2.00 pm.

Alhaurín el Grande

This weekend the historic centre of Alhaurín el Grande will welcome a medieval market for the second time. It will be held from Friday until Sunday 19 March in the plaza Baja and the streets Altillo, Cilla and San Sebastián, it is open to the public from 12.00 noon until 11.00 pm.

The market will comprise of around 60 stalls including all types of handicrafts. There will be examples of the time period, including ways of life and workshops, musicians, puppeteers and other street artists as well as typical food products of the region.

Airport Chaos

The ongoing major building work at Málaga airport is causing great difficulty for passengers trying to get to the airport in time to catch planes. The worst time is from 10.30 a.m. to 1.30 p.m. with the problem becoming a daily occurrence in the last few months with long tailbacks to the San Miguel beer factory. The enlargement of the car park areas to double the size is one of the main pieces of work causing the problems.

Málaga airport has come up with new plans to try and limit the effects on travellers of the building works currently causing traffic chaos and other problems at the terminal. A statement from the airport says that passengers will note improvements from Friday 10 March. More people have been employed to guide traffic, access roads have been widened, and 600 new parking places have been created. The bus which runs between the car park next to the control tower and the terminal, will now run more frequently.

Repairs to Forest Trails

A three year environmental project to improve 1,200 kilometres of forest trails has been presented this week. The work will take place in 52 towns and has a budget of six million Euros. The forest ways will take on a new aspect in the next few years: repairs to the surfaces of the tracks, drainage work to withstand the strong rains and the creation of rest areas and viewpoints. These are some of the measures planned within the project to conserve the network of rural roads of the province that was presented by the Junta de Andalucía.

Overall 1,200 kilometres of forest ways will be adapted and will affect 52 municipalities in the province. The project will cross five nature reserves (Sierra de las Nieves, Montes de Málaga, Los Alcornocales, Sierra Tejeda y Almijara and Sierra de Grazelema), three natural parks (Defiladero de los Gaitanes, Torcal de Antequera and Sierra Bermeja) and the nature preserve of the Laguna de Fuente de Piedra.

Picasso's go to Málaga

Malaga, Picasso’s home town, celebrates the 125th anniversary of the artist’s birth with The Picassos of Antibes at the Museo Picasso (13 March-11 June). Picasso’s friend, Dor de la Souchère, invited the Spaniard to use a room in the Grimaldi castle in Antibes on the French Riviera as a studio (the castle was turned into a museum in 1929). He enjoyed the experience so much that he covered the walls of the castle with vast murals and donated the 44 drawings and 23 paintings he had made on the theme of the "joy of life" to the town of Antibes. These works reflect the hope and euphoria of post-war liberation.

Some 76 ceramic pieces made by Picasso in 1947 at the Madoura pottery in Vallauris are also housed at the Antibes museum which was renamed the Musée Picasso in 1966. The institution is shipping out some 73 works to Malaga including the murals The joy of life or Antipolis and Man gulping sea urchins (1946).

Leave Those Beams in Córdoba

Spain has asked Interpol to prevent the sale of five 10th century wooden beams from the historic Great Mosque of Córdoba, which were due to go on sale next month at Christie's auction house in London. The five larch beams were carved and painted by the Moorish craftsmen who helped extend the famous mosque to its current size 10 centuries ago.

Spain wants the beams, formerly part of one of the country's most visited and valued historic monuments, to be impounded until the legality of the sale can be clarified.

Spanish law from 1985 bars objects more than 100 years old from being exported without a permit.But Christie's yesterday insisted it was not worried about the provenance of the beams. It said the beams, whose estimated value is between £200,000 and £300,000, had left the mosque area before experts began to catalogue remains at the site in the 1920s.

Las Fallas

Las Fallas, Valencia's biggest festival, takes place every March with a week of fires, explosions and parades in honour of Saint Joseph. This year the festival takes place from the 15th to the 19th of March 2006. This year there will be models of George W. Bush, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero and Prince Charles, who will be shown dancing in Highland dress.

Anniversary of Madrid Train Bombings

Spain is marking the second anniversary of the Madrid train bombings today, Saturday 11 March, in which 191 people were killed. The prime minister, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, will attend a wreath-laying ceremony in the Forest of Remembrance at noon, which will be followed by a five-minute silence.

As Spain observed the low-key remembrance, a delegation from Morocco, home to many of the suspects, fell silent at a station targeted in the massacre.

The 70-member delegation, called the Moroccan Caravan for Peace and Solidarity, set out from Morocco in buses on March 5, stopping in several Spanish cities before arriving at Atocha train station on a cold, blustery morning.

Members held a red Moroccan flag next to the red-and-yellow one of Spain as they stood in silence inside the station, one of four sites where 10 backpack bombs exploded exactly two years ago, killing 191 people and wounding more than 1,500. The delegation deposited a wreath of red and white roses and daisies inside the station and wrote messages of condolence on a large screen computer terminal set up at a memorial site inside the building.The ceremony was the first of several scheduled for a day in which the normally festive atmosphere of a weekend in Spain was replaced by heartbreaking memories of the morning of March 11, 2004.

General Franco's Paintings?

Three small oil paintings which had been attributed to Francisco Franco have been withdrawn from an auction in Seville after lawyer, Joaquín Moekel, acting as spokesman for the Franco family, firmly denied that the paintings were the work of the late Spanish dictator. The lawyer claims that Franco never used a pseudonym when he painted as has been claimed in this case, and also he is never known to have painted any scenes in Morocco. The Arte Información y Gestión (AIG) company had intended to auction the three works in Seville on 5 April, however, following the statement from the family lawyer they have withdrawn the items from sale on a ‘precautionary basis’.

Olives as Energy Source

More than 300 buildings in Madrid now run on energy extracted from olive cores, raising hopes that olives will become an alternative source of cheap power. In one building, an aluminium heating system continuously sucks tonnes of olive cores from a silo to a stove where they are transformed into embers that give off sufficient energy to heat 16 apartments and offices. Spain is the world's largest producer of olives.

Spain is to Allow Free Circulation of New Europeans

Speaking during the 3rd Spain-Poland summit in Granada, president Zapatero said that from the 1st May,2006 Spain would permit the free circulation of workers from the Eastern European countries that have recently been admitted to the European Union.

Mr Zapatero announced the news at a joint press conference with his counterpart, Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz, following their meeting. He said that he was convinced that this measure would be very positive both for these countries and the rest of Europe.

Drink Red Wine, It Can Help Treat Gum Disease!

Canadian scientists believe the polyphenols in red wine can block production of free radical molecules, high levels of which can damage gum tissue. The research, by Quebec's Universite Laval, was presented to the American Association for Dental Research. However, dentists warn there are other risks associated with drinking wine, and people should not think it was good for their teeth.

The Canadian study suggests polyphenols stop free radical production by subtly changing the make-up of proteins within the cells that control their release.

Periodontitis destroys gum tissue and is a leading cause of teeth loss, affecting millions worldwide. It is important to remember that the acidic content of red wine could cause other problems.............

Málaga 0 - Valencia 0

Valencia were held to a 0-0 draw by Málaga at home last weekend. This weekend Málaga are away to Betis, kick off at 5.00 pm.

Alonso Fourth at Bahrain Grand Prix

Michael Schumacher took pole position at the end of an hour of high-speed qualifying action, his team mate Felipe Massa was second with Britain's Jenson Button third and Fernando Alonso 4th.

Fernando Alonso Buys a Home in Switzerland

The Prensa Rosa, (Gossip Press) have driven away perhaps the country’s greatest current sporting hero. Formula One World Champion, Fernando Alonso, has declared that the press here have persecuted him so much in search of items from his private life that he can no longer live here, and so he has brought a house in Switzerland.

Alonso gave the news to the press at his first contact with them ahead of the new formula one season. He said the straw which broke the camels back were reports that he is to marry in November. Alonso added that he would love to live in Spain, just as other drivers live in their home countries, but he had seen that it was impossible.

Rugby for Ladies

Wales Women completed their third win of the Championship with a hard-fought win at Pontypridd's Sardis Road. Full-back Non Evans got the scoreboard moving after 14 minutes with a penalty in front of the posts.Wales continued to dominate and the breakthrough came in the 25th minute with a superb individual try from fly half Naomi Thomas, Evans converting.

Spain's best effort came in the final quarter when a 40-metre driving maul was halted just short of the Welsh line. Touchline runs by substitute winger Philippa Tuttiett and by Evans just failed to produce a second try in the closing minutes.

Final result; Wales Women 10-0 Spain Women

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A Topical Digest of News and Views from the Andalucía Area in Spain

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